A wide variety of counter-mounted viscous liquid dispensers, which are also referred to as “in-counter” viscous liquid dispensers, are known in the art. One problem in the art of the in-counter viscous fluid dispensers is refilling an empty reservoir. Some reservoirs are refilled from the top of the counter by removing the dispensing head, attaching an adapter and attaching a refill container to the adapter. Gravity transfers the viscous liquid from the refill container to the dispenser reservoir. These types of refilling means often leak, causing loss of the viscous liquid and often require time and resources to clean-up any leaked or spilled viscous liquid.
In other under-counter dispensing systems that are commercially available, refills are completed by removing an empty reservoir and replacing the empty reservoir with a replacement reservoir which is filled with a viscous liquid. The problem with the systems which are currently commercially available is that the replacement reservoirs need to be properly aligned with a connecting means in order to install the refill reservoirs. This is because the element which actuates the pump of these systems is generally off center, which requires that the refill be in a particular orientation for the system to dispense the viscous liquid. Some solutions to this problem have included the use of additional actuator openings for the actuator rod to contact an engaging element, which actuates the pump in the refill reservoir, so that the refill can be installed in several different positions. However, these systems still have limited orientations that allow the refill reservoir to attach to the dispensing system. Even with more than one orientation, it can still be difficult to properly align the refills with the connecting means while working under a counter.
Typically, counter-mounted soap dispensers have a dispensing head which is part of the mounting assembly. Generally, the dispensing head has a rigid tube extending from the counter contacting side of the dispensing head and this rigid tube extends through the counter to the underside of the counter. To mount the dispenser, the rigid tube of the dispenser is inserted into a hole present in the counter. The rigid tube is long enough so that the tube extends from about the top surface of the counter, through the hole in the counter with the end of the tube opposite the dispensing head extending downward past the bottom surface of the counter. The hole in the counter is of a size so that the rigid tube can extend through the counter but the dispensing head will not. That is, the dispensing head of the dispenser is wider than the hole in the counter. Generally, threads are present on an outer diameter of the rigid tube. A locking device, such as a locking nut, is threaded onto the threads of the tube and tightened to contact the bottom surface of the counter. It is the tightening of the locking device that secures that dispenser to the counter. An example of the mounting mechanism is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 6,142,342 to Lewis.
While this type of mounting mechanism is effective in mounting a counter-mounted soap dispenser onto a counter, it is often difficult to install counter-mounted soap dispensers onto counters using this type of mechanism, especially after the counter is installed in the place of use. This is because to install a viscous liquid dispenser having the mounting system described above after a counter is installed, the installer needs to work both above and below the counter to tighten the locking device and position the dispenser in the proper orientation. Working space under counters in rest rooms is often limited, making it difficult, time consuming and/or costly to install these counter-mounted soap dispensers. As a result, to replace one of these dispensers in a public rest room it may be necessary to close the rest room for a period of time, have two people work in tandem, and/or remove the installed counter top for proper access to the mounting system.
Dispensers over time become inoperative for one reason or another. When in public rest rooms, these dispensers are also abused and/or vandalized by some users. When this occurs, the dispensers will need to be replaced. Replacing a dispenser which is mounted using a conventional mounting system is also difficult and time consuming. This is because the attachment process described above needs to be reversed to remove the inoperative dispenser. Alternatively, the inoperative dispenser could be cut away from the counter, which would require the installer to carry additional tools. In addition, cutting or destroying could result in damage to the counter top.
There is a need in the art for an easy to install and easy to replace counter-mounted viscous liquid dispenser. In addition, there is a need in the art for an easy and convenient way to refill in-counter dispensers.